Logan man charged with chaining child to bed

LOGAN — Criminal charges were filed Wednesday against a Logan father who police say chained his 6-year-old son to a bed while he was at work.

Sammie Hodges, 28, was charged in 1st District Court with four counts of child abuse, a class A misdemeanor.

Police went to the home at 825 N. 1400 East after receiving an anonymous tip Tuesday. Officers said they found the boy chained by his ankle to the bed frame while his father, Hodges, was at work. The boy's chain was long enough to reach the bathroom and some food, according to police.

The child was placed in the care of the Utah Division of Child and Family Services on Tuesday. Investigators said he was physically healthy.

A search of court records indicates Hodges pleaded guilty to simple assault and disorderly conduct in 2008. A domestic violence charge was filed and later dismissed, Utah state court records show. He was also convicted of criminal trespassing in 2006, theft and three counts of forgery in 2009.